ABSTRACT
Objective To determine the expression of Caspase 8 and phospho-Akt(p-Akt)in condyloma acuminatum(CA)lesions, and to evaluate their significance. Methods Skin lesion samples were collected from 30 patients with CA, cancer tissue samples from 20 with cervical cancer, and normal skin samples from 20 healthy controls. All the samples were subjected to paraffin embedding. An immunohistochemical study was conducted to determine the expression and distribution of Caspase 8 and p-Akt in the above samples. Results The expression rate of Caspase 8 was significantly lower in CA lesions (23.33%)than in normal skin samples(90%, P < 0.01)and cervical cancer lesions(80%, P < 0.001). Moreover, the expression rate of p-Akt in CA lesions(93.33%)was significantly higher than that in the normal skin samples(90%, P<0.001), but lower than that in the cervical cancer lesions(95%, P<0.001). No significant correlations were observed between the expression of Caspase 8 and p-Akt in either CA lesions or normal skin samples. However, the expression of Caspase 8 was positively correlated with the expression of p-Akt in cervical cancer lesions(r=0.369, P<0.05). Conclusion Both suppressed apoptosis initiation of Caspase 8 and anti-apoptotic effect of p-Akt may be involved in the occurrence and development of CA.
ABSTRACT
A method using X-rays to measure mass thickness is discussed. The method utilizes a filter to absorb low energy and characteristic photons so that the hardened X-ray spectra have a peaked energy distribution. An equivalent X-ray energy, which defines the attenuation in a material of interest can be used. The effect on the X-ray spectra of different filters is examined with Monte Carlo simulation using the EGSnrc package. A theoretical model for X-ray absorption that shows that the method can achieve good precision for a certain range of mass thicknesses is advanced. Experimental results agree well with the theoretical analysis. It is found that for a certain range of mass thicknesses, the relative error can be less than 1% for the aluminum alloy sample at the tube voltage of 30 or 45 kV.
